February 15, 1373.] THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
619 
^xmutms at % j&rattj. 
Errata. 
Page 628, col. 2, line 26, for Johnson, Edward Eli, 
read Johnson, Edwin Eli. 
Page 629, col. 1, line 25, for Ilearne, read Hearn. 
NORTH BRITISH BRANCH, EDINBURGH. 
The third meeting of the present session was held in 
the Society’s rooms, St. Giles Street, on Friday evening, 
January 31st, at half-past eight ; Mr. Gilmore, vice- 
president, in the absence of Mr. Baildon, president, from 
indisposition, in the chair. There was a full attendance. 
The following is an abstract of an interesting lecture 
“ On Paraffin Oils, with, special Reference to their test¬ 
ing and illuminating Power,” by Dr. Stevenson Mac¬ 
adam :— 
After referring to the manufacture and rectification 
of mineral oils, it was stated, that under the Petroleum 
Act, all mineral oils which evolved inflammable vapour 
at a temperature less than 100° F. were held to be in¬ 
cluded under the general term of petroleum, and were 
subject to certain restrictions as to safe keeping or 
storage, and sale or exposure for sale. The present plan 
-of testing was in an open vessel surrounded by an outer 
vessel containing water which is heated by a lamp, and 
through which the heat is communicated to the inner 
vessel containing the oil to be examined. The Act 
provides that the “outer vessel shall be filled with cold, 
or nearly cold, waterand that “ a small flame shall be 
applied to the outer vessel.” There is a want of pre¬ 
cision in the instructions, and hence great irregularities 
occur in the testing of the same sample of oil by different 
-experimenters. As a general rule, the quicker the oil 
is heated, the lower the temperature at which sufficient in¬ 
flammable vapour is given off at one time to take fire or 
flash when a light is drawn across the surface of the 
vessel containing the oil; and the more slowly the oil is 
heated, the higher is the temperature at which the oil 
flashes, for during the slow heating the oil evolves va¬ 
pour, little by little, and not sufficient for some time to 
exhibit the flash when a light is brought near. Another 
source of difference in the testing is in reference to the 
cold or nearly cold water which is required to be in the 
outer vessel not being rigidly defined, for the instruc¬ 
tions might be carried out with water at 32°, 40°, 50°, 60 g 
and even 70°- or 80° F. Even the screen which is to 
surround the apparatus is loosely defined, for it is said 
“ to surround it about two-thirds and to reach several 
inches above the level of the vessels.” 
The new testing apparatus which is likely to be intro¬ 
duced during the coming session of Parliament will pro¬ 
bably remove all the sources of error. It is covered or 
is a close vessel, with a small cover which can be re¬ 
moved every now and again for the purpose of drawing 
the flame across and observing the flash-point. Specific 
instructions will probably be given as to the tempera¬ 
ture of both the water and oil at the commencement of the 
-experiment, and the exact rate of heating, say 2° F. per 
minute. These precautions will admit of uniformity 
being obtained in the results of the testing of the same 
-oil by different experimenters. 
The illuminating power of paraffin oil was then con¬ 
sidered, and the value of mineral oils as sources of light 
in common or house lamps and in lighthouse lamps was 
fully discussed. The paper was illustrated throughout 
by many experiments. 
A vote of thanks to the lecturer, proposed by the 
chairman, seconded by Mr. Young, was carried by accla¬ 
mation. 
rotarial SfansartiOT. 
LEEDS CHEMISTS’ ASSOCIATION. 
The fourth meeting of this society was held in the 
Clergy-room, Church Institute, on Yv r ednesday, January 
22nd; the President, Mr. E. Brown, in the chair. 
The minutes of the last meeting having been read and 
confirmed, Messrs. R. Stevens, W. Denham and Thos. 
Harpham were elected associates. 
The paper of the evening was read by Mr. Thomas 
Fairley, F.C.S., Consulting Chemist to the Yorkshire 
Agricultural Society, on “ Bone and some of its products,” 
of which the following is an abstract:— 
In the lower animals, as the mollusca, oyster, crab, etc., 
the bone forms the outer protective covering, while in 
higher animals it is the inner framework. Iu the case 
of the skull, spinal column, etc., it-also serves as covering 
for the inner soft parts. 
Bone consists of mineral substances, chiefly phosphate 
and carbonate of lime, and of an organic cartilaginous 
substance, ossein, which remains when bones are digested 
in hydrochloric acid, the mineral substances being dis¬ 
solved by the acid. Ossein is a flexible, comparatively 
soft substance, forming bone-glue when boiled with 
water. 
The mineral substances remain when bone is burnt in 
air. In the lower animals carbonate of lime predomi¬ 
nates, while in the higher animals we find chiefly the 
phosphate. In young animals also we find more phos¬ 
phates than in old. 
When bones are heated in close vessels, ammoniacal 
and oily products distil over, and bone-charcoal is left. 
The ammoniacal and other products consist of ammonia 
and its salts, and volatile organic bases, amongst which 
we find pyridine C 5 H 5 N, and substances belonging to the 
same or analogous series. (Exp. showing distillation 
of bone.) 
Bone-charcoal is used for decolorizing sugar syrup, 
on account of its property of absorbing vegetable colours 
from their solutions. (Exp. solution of litmus was 
nearly decolorized by filtration through bone-charcoal.) 
Its cost requires that the bone-charcoal should be used 
over and over again. This is effected by re-burning it, 
by which its properties are restored. After using re¬ 
peatedly in this manner it becomes clogged, etc., by the 
lime salts which it also absorbs from the syrup. By 
treating with dilute acid, these are removed. Hydro¬ 
chloric acid has been used for this purpose, but it is 
liable to leave a little chloride of calcium which on 
burning glazes the charcoal and prevents its action. A 
recent improvement proposes to use acetic acid. Any 
acetate of lime then left would foim carbonate on burn¬ 
ing, which would not interfere. 
Bone-ash is valuable as a manure, depending on the 
phosphate of lime which it contains, and it is our chief 
source of phosphorus for the manufacture of matches. 
It is treated first with sulphuric acid and water when 
sulphate of lime is separated, and a phosphate rich in 
phosphoric acid remains. Thus :— 
Ca 3 2 P0 4 + 2IL,S0 4 = 2 CaSQ 4 + CaH 4 2 P0 4 
Bone Ash. Sulphuric Acid. Sulphate of Lime. Acid or Soluble 
Phosphate of Lime. 
The soluble phosphate is evaporated to dryness, mixed 
with charcoal and distilled at a white heat. r Ihe vapour 
of the phosphorus is condensed in water. 
3 (CaH 4 2 P0 4 ) + 4 C = Ca 3 2P0 4 + ^H^P 
Soluble phosphate. Charcoal. Bone Ash Water. 
Kegenerated. 
-}- 4 CO -j- 4 P 
Carbon Phosphorus. 
Monoxide. 
